The International Folklore Festival of Gannat has been celebrating the folk culture of the world "Les Cultures du Monde" for last 39 years with much pride, fanfare and pageantry. The 10 days long festival of Gannat is organized by the Association Nationale Cultures et Tradition (ANCT), which is led by Jean Roche, the founder of the Festival of Gannat and a permanent representative of International Council for Folklore Festivals in the UNESCO. While, Roche is happy overseeing the selection of the groups and overall functioning of the festival as the honorary president and artistic director, the current president Christine Huaulme oversees the administration of ANCT, while Emanuelle Fosse is the director of the International Folklore Festival of Gannat.

With more than 400 artists participating in the festivities, the International Folklore Festival of Gannat is among one of the largest gathering of folk performers in the world. On an average, groups from 20 different countries participate in the festival each year; the organisers are careful enough to select participants from all over the world, thereby representing an eclectic mix of folk culture, especially music and dance.

ANCT makes it a point to give preference to the folk cultures that are facing the threat of extinction, so that they can create awareness about the dying culture and try to get some individuals, groups, NGOs and government to notice and discuss about safeguarding these dying “intangible heritage” of humanity [1].

For the International Folklore Festival of Gannat, it is just not about showcasing folk dance, music and art; it is also about the passion of people towards celebrating and safeguarding their culture; no wonder the town and village folks in and around Gannat have been supporting the festival unconditionally. Every year more than 500 volunteers descend in Gannat in the month of July from all over the world to make this festival a reality and provide the participating groups with the best possible experience. The volunteers ranging from the age group of 15 to 85 can been seen enthusiastically participating in the work they are assigned, be it managing the groups, organizing lunch and dinner, setting up and cleaning the festival arena, working as chauffeurs or simply running a food or drinks stall.

Jean Roche[2] states, “the focus of this festival is to appreciate the authentic folk and traditional groups, as well as stylized ones; and I think this really is a wonderful chance to demonstrate and experience the concept of ‘universal brotherhood’.” Roche further points out that the festival programme is designed in such a manner that the groups from the various countries not only get a chance to showcase their culture to the audience but also mingle with other groups and audience as well as the local supporters of the festival.

Anne Rozier [3], the vice president of ANCT adds, “for example, Zorenka, the folk group from Russia was invited by a local village council to perform; after the performance the group members were divided in smaller groups of 4-5 and were invited by the local families at their home for dinner. Rozier finds this kind of interaction between the “performers” and the “audience” as one of the best examples, where the local people embrace the invited folk groups members, which leads to a better understanding, camaraderie and bonhomie. No wonder many of these local villages end up endorsing or rather in a way adopting one or two particular invited folk dance groups during the festival and will follow the group’s performance throughout the festival and be their ardent supporters. Rozier finds that very few folklore festivals provide such an intimate setting and direct meeting of the artists and the audience, which often results in a long lasting friendly relations between people from different cultures and countries.

Pic 5. Members of the Russian group Zorenka hosted by a family from Gannat

The history of ANCT and the International Folklore Festival of Gannat dates back to 1965, when Jean Roche with his group " Lo Gars D'cheu Nous’, started his mission for the revival of the traditional festivals and thus creating an interest in the region regarding folk dance and culture. In 1970, the group changed it name to "La Bourrée Gannatoise" and participated in the National Conference of Folklore in Nevers. 1970 was the year when Jean Roche started envisioning of organizing a world folklore festival and started his work towards it by traveling to different festivals and meeting various folk dance groups [4].

It was in the year 1974 that the first Festival of Gannat was organized, which saw the participation of groups from France, Poland, Portugal, Sweden, Romania and Turkey. Marieagnes Jaques [5], the programme coordinator of the festival observes, “the first festival was only for three days, but because of the phenomenal response that it received, we decided to continue with the festival as a yearly event; by 1978 the festival had to be made a 10 day long affair due to its success and popularity.”

The 39th edition of the Gannat Festival was held from 20th to 30th July showcasing an interesting mix of folk cultures from all over the world that included dance, music, cuisine, art, masks, sculptures to name a few.

The European tradition and culture were showcased by groups such as Zorenka from Penza, and Aiylgan Dyakoutsk Yakutia from the Russian Federation; VTV Alt-Miesbach from Munich, Bavaria represented Germany, folk group Loch Lao from Ireland, "Bursa Nilufer Folk Dance Ensemble” from Turkey, Akademiduka from Guadeloupe and the local group from Gannat, "The Bourrée Gannatoise" represented France.

Ensemble of Capiata from Paraguay, Guamanique group from Puerto Rico and Viva Xalisco from Mexico displayed the folk culture of South America; while the group “Komenka” from New Orleans, USA, evocatively expressed the North American culture. From the Asian continent— "Folkland Trikaripur" group from India, and traditional Sasandu musician Jackob Hendrich A Bullan from Timor, Indonesia presented their age-old treasured folk dance and music.